Cooling garment



, J. B. SMITH COOLING GARMENT July 1,1969

Filed Feb. 8, 1968 JESSIE B. SMITH INVENTOR.

United States Patent Office 3,452,554 Patented July 1, 1969 3,452,554 COOLING GARMENT Jessie B. Smith, 2828 San Jose Ave., San Francisco, Calif. 94112 Filed Feb. 8, 1968, Ser. No- 704,040 Int. C]. F 25d 3/08 US. Cl. 62259 3 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A multilayer section of material surrounds the upper torso of the wearer and is held closed at the front by a belt or lacing. A tube-like collar, connected with the garment, surrounds the neck of the wearer for receiving chipped ice which, as it melts, drains into a plurality of vertical compartments formed between the layers of the material.

Background of the invention The present invention relates to cooling devices and more particularly to a garment adapted to provide cooling for the body of a wearer.

Body cooling devices have been proposed before but most of these devices utilize the process of evaporation of a liquid for cooling the body wherein the evaporation of the liquid contained by the device absorbs body heat of a wearer. Garments which depend upon the evaporation of a volatile liquid are satisfactory when the humidity is relatively low, however, when the atmosphere contains considerable moisture the rate of evaporation is reduced to such an extent that the desired cooling elfect cannot be achieved. This invention, on the other hand, does not rely on the evaporation of a liquid but depends for its cooling efiect on heat being absorbed from the body of the wearer by the melting of ice and the absorption of heat from the wearer in raising the temperature of the resulting ice water contained by the garment.

Summary of the invention Two layers of water proof material, shaped to surround the neck and upper torso of a wearer, are joined together at their marginal edges and at a plurality of locations intermediate their edges to form a series of vertically extending pockets or chambers extending from the neck to the waist portion of the wearer. A ring-like tubular member or collar is secured to the garment around the neck of a wearer and is provided with an access opening for receiving chipped ice. Openings in the collar communicate with the vertical chambers of the garment so that water draining out of the ring or neck piece is collected by the chambers. A layer of soft fabric forms a lining between the innermost water proof layer and the wearers body.

The principal object of the invention is to provide a means for cooling the body of a wearer by the absorption of body heat in melting ice and raising the temperature of the resulting ice Water.

Brief description of the drawings FIGURE 1 is a front elevational view of the device in wearing position;

FIGURE 2 is a rear elevational view of FIG. 1;

FIGURE 3 is a vertical cross-sectional view taken substantially along the line 33 of FIG. 2;

FIGURE 4 is a plan view of the garment; and,

FIGURE 5 is a horizontal sectional view taken substantially along the line 5-5 of FIG. 4.

Brief description of the preferred embodiment Like characters of reference designate like parts in those figures of the drawings in which they occur.

terial, such as plastic, of a configuration to loosely surround the upper torso of a wearer, having a neck line 16, front edges 18 and 20 and a depending or hem edge 22. Arm hole slits or openings 23 are formed in both layers 12 and 14. The outer layer 14 is of a larger dimension than the inner layer 20 and is joined as by bonding, not shown, to the inner layer at the respective marginal edges and arm openings and at a plurality of spaced-apart locations, indicated by the wavy lines 24, .to form a plurality of chambers or pockets 26 vertically extending between the neck line 16 and hem line 22. The garment is lined by a layer of cotton fabric, indicated at 28. A tubelike substantially circular neck ring or collar 30, having closed ends, is secured to the garment at the neck line 16. The collar 30 is provided with an access opening 32 great enough to permit the insertion of chipped ice, indicated by the dotted lines 34 (FIG. 3). The opening 32 is closed by a plug or cap 36. The collar 30 is further provided with a series or plurality of small openings 38, one for each of the chambers 26, so that water, as a result of the melting of the ice 34, drains into the respective chamber 26 and is collected therein, as indicated by the lines 40 (FIG. 3).

Operation In operation the wearer places the garment around the upper portion of his body with his arms projecting through the sleeve openings 23 and the collar 30 encircling the neck. Prior to donning the garment the chambers 26 are preferably filled approximately one-fourth full with cold water 40 and the neck piece is filled with the crushed ice 34. The garment may be left open at its front or fastened together as by lacing inserted through loops 42 formed on the front edge of the garment. Alternatively, a belt 44 may be placed around the .back portion of the wearer under the garment and extended outwardly through the sleeve openings 23 for fastening by means of a buckle 46 at the front. As the ice 34 melts, cool water drips downwardly out of the collar openings 38 into the respective chambers 26 and as the water trickles downwardly it absorbs heat from the body of the wearer. The layer of cotton fabric, interposed between the wearer and the innermost water proof layer 12, serves as a perspiration absorbent and heat transfer as well as preventing any discomfort which would be present if the plastic material directly contacted the wearers skin.

Obviously the invention is susceptible to some change or alteration Without defeating its practicability, and I therefore do not wish to be confined to the preferred embodiment shown in the drawings and described herein, further than I .am limited by the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A cooling garment, comprising: inner and outer layers of water proof material, said outer layer having a slightly greater overall dimension than said inner layer and being secured to said inner layer at its marginal edges and at a plurality of spaced-apart positions extending from the neck to the hem portion and forming a like plurality of water proof chambers; collar means secured to the neck line of said garment, said collar means communicating with the respective water proof chambers; and a heat absorbing medium contained by said collar.

2. Structure as specified in claim 1 in which the collar means comprises a substantially circular length of tubular material having closed ends and having an opening intermediate its ends; and a cap removably closing the opening.

3. Structure as specified in claim 2 in which the heatv 13,070,803 .1/1-963: Slepicku-:eeeeeeen-eu 62-259 absorbing medium comprises chipped ice. 3,074,250 1/1963 Everett 62-259 3,125,865 3/1964 Bemelman. References Cited Y WILLIAM J. WYE, Primary Examiner. UNITED STATES PATENTS 5 3,000,190 9/1961 Stark 62-259 US. Cl. X.R.

3,049,896 8/1962 Webb 62-259 2-7, 459 

